Current Members
 
Professor Stephanie MA
Interim Vice-President & Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research), HKU
Jimmy and Emily Tang Professor in Molecular Genetics, School of Biomedical Sciences, HKUMed

Prof. Ma obatined her B.Sc. in Cell Biology and Genetics and her M.Sc. in Experimental Medicine from the University of British Columbia, Canada. She obtained her Ph.D. from the University of Hong Kong (HKU), graduating with outstanding honors and receiving the Li Ka Shing Prize for the Best PhD Thesis of that year. Since then, she has been working at HKU, where she is currently Interim Vice-President & Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research) and holds the position of Jimmy and Emily Tang Professor in Molecular Genetics at the School of Biomedical Sciences within the Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine (HKUMed). Prof. Ma is also a Principal Investigator at the State Key Laboratory of Liver Research. Her previous roles at HKU include Associate Vice-President (Research and Innovation), Associate Director of the Knowledge Exchange Office, and Assistant Dean (Innovation and Technology Transfer) at HKUMed. She has also served as the Academic Lead of the Imaging and Flow Cytometry Core, Bioreagent Core, and Bioresearch Support Core of the Centre for PanorOmic Sciences, as well as an Associate Director in the School of Biomedical Sciences.

Prof. Ma’s research team focuses on understanding how the maintenance of stemness and undifferentiated states in cancer contribute to therapy resistance and tumor recurrence. Her work has significantly advanced knowledge of functional markers and properties that regulate cancer cell plasticity, particularly in gastrointestinal tumors such as hepatocellular carcinoma (liver cancer). In her field, she has been ranked top 1% most-cited scholar by Clarivate (2010–2018), ranked among the top 2% of scientists worldwide by Stanford University (2022-2025), and listed as a “top scientist” (nationally ranked 65 in molecular biology) by Research.com (2025 and 2026). Her numerous awards include the 2008 Young Scientist Award in Life Sciences from the Hong Kong Institution of Science, the 2012-13 Outstanding Young Researcher Award from HKU, the 2014 Croucher Innovation Award, the 2014 Scientific Research Outstanding Achievement Award (Second-class) from the Higher Education Institution of China, the 2017 UBC Alumni Builder Award, the 2018 Ton Duc Thang University Scientific Prize – Rising Star Award, the 2021 RGC Research Fellow Scheme, the 2023 Croucher Senior Research Fellowship, as well as the Outstanding Researcher Award (2022–23) and the Outstanding Research Student Supervisor Award (2024–25) from HKU.

Prof. Ma is a Founding Member and current Vice-President and Chair of the Policy Advisory Committee of the Hong Kong Young Academy of Sciences (YASHK). She is also a member of the Future Forum Young Scientist Innovation Alliance in China and serves on the Advisory Board of the Hong Kong Life Sciences Society (HKLSS) as well as the RGC Biology and Medicine Panel. Additionally, she is a Senior Editor of Cancer Research and an editorial board member for Hepatology, Cellular and Molecular Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Carcinogenesis, and Differentiation. Beyond academia, Prof. Ma is actively involved in community service. She has served on the Board of Directors at Hong Kong Science and Technology Park (HKSTP) from 2020-2026 and currently is a board member of the newly established San Tin Technopole Company Limited (STTCL). She also serves on the Science Sub-committee under the Museum Advisory Committee and the Expert Panel on the Designation of Designated Local Research Institutions.

Dr. Kai Yu NG, Johnson – Senior Research Officer
Dr. Tin Lok WONG, Eric – Senior Research Officer
Dr. Gladys POON – Research Assistant Professor
Dr. Ianto Bosheng HUANG – Postdoctoral Fellow
Dr. Huajian YU – Postdoctoral Fellow
Dr. Ka Hei LAM, Sheree – Postdoctoral Fellow
Dr. Shiu Yeung LAM, Lance – Postdoctoral Fellow
Dr. Ut Kei LOU, Venus – Postdoctoral Fellow
Dr. Wei MENG – Postdoctoral Fellow
Yinjia HUANG, Angel – HKU Presidential PhD student (2022-2026)
Jingyi YUAN – PhD student (2022-2026)
Yee Lok TSOI, Elok – RGC HKPFS PhD student (2023-2027)
Yalu CUI – PhD student (2023-2027)
Yuxin HU – RGC HKPFS PhD student (2024-2027)
Yanshu KONG, Angela – RGC HKPFS PhD student (2024-2028)
Changmo PARK – RGC HKPFS PhD student (2024-2028)
Lamia CHOWDHURY – PhD student (2025-2028)
Rafter WU – Research Assistant
Juyu CHEN – Technical Officer
Mercy WAN – BBMS FYP student (2026-2027)

Lab Alumni
Dr. Kwan Ho TANG – Co-supervised PhD student (2008-2011)
Pak Shing KWAN – Research Assistant (2009-2013)
Yu Long GAO, Aaron – Research Assistant (2014-2015)
Tsun Ming FUNG, Kent – MPhil student (2012-2014)
Tsz Yan LUI, Daisy – BBMS FYP student (2015-2016)
Dr. Stella CHAI – HKU UPF PhD student (2012-2015)
Chi Chung LAU, Marco – MPhil student (2014-2016)
Dr. Lok Hei CHAN, Jack – PhD student (2013-2016), Postdoctoral Fellow (2016-2017)
Dag WONG – BSc Biochem intern (2016-2017)
Chun Ho CHAN, Ben – BBMS FYP student (2016-2017)
Dr. Chi Han LI, Samson – Postdoctoral Fellow (2016-2017)
Tsz Wai LI, Natalie – MPhil student (2016-2018)
Tsz Lok FONG, Marco – BBMS FYP student (2018-2019)
Cheuk Yin LIN, Alan – BBMS FYP student (2018-2019)
Wan Foon KAU, Phillis – Senior Technical Officer (2013-2019)
Dr. Noelia CHE – PhD student (2016-2019)
Dr. Tin Chi LUK, Steve – HKU UPF PhD student (2014-2018), Postdoctoral Fellow (2018-2019)
Cheuk LI, Terry – Research Assistant (2020)
Po Chit FUNG, Pucci – BBMS FYP student (2020-2021)
Jun Fung KAM, Max – MBBS Enrichment Year student (2020-2021)
Dr. Lei ZHOU, Lena – Postdoctoral Fellow (2015-2021)
Dr. Ho Chun LOONG, Jane – PhD student (2017-2021), Postdoctoral Fellow (2021)
Dr. Yanyan WANG – Postdoctoral Fellow (2020-2021)
Dr. Mingdan DENG, Sara – Postdoctoral Fellow (2020-2022)
Dr. Man TONG – PhD student (2010-2014), Postdoctoral Fellow (2014-2019), Research Assistant Professor (2019-2022)
Yunong XIE – Co-supervised MPhil student (2020-2022)
Hiu Yat YU, Justin – MRes(Med) (2021-2022)
Suo LING, Sarah – Research Assistant (2020-2022)
Dr. Yuan GAO – HK Scholars Program Postdoctoral Fellow (2021-2023)
Ka Yi LEUNG, Victoria – Research Assistant (2022-2023)
Lok Sze YEUNG, Phoebe – BBMS FYP student (2022-2023)
Yee Lok TSOI, Elok – BBMS FYP student (2022-2023)
Dr. Tsz Lam WONG, Matthew – PhD student (2018-2021), Postdoctoral Fellow (2021-2023)
Dr. Jia Jian LOH – RGC HKPFS PhD student (2019-2023), Postdoctoral Fellow (2023-2024)
Dr. Ki Fong MAN, Toni – PhD student (2020-2023), Senior Research Assistant (2023)
Dr. Huajian YU – PhD student (2020-2024)
Yanshu KONG, Angela – Research Assistant (2022-2024)
Dr. Ka Hei LAM, Sheree – PhD student (2021-2024)
Cheuk Chun HO, Joseph – Part-time MPhil student (2022-2025)
Dr. Ut Kei LOU, Venus – PhD student (2021-2025)
Jia Yan TAN – MPhil student (2022-2024); Research Assistant (2024-2025)
Chun Yuen WONG, Don – Research Assistant (2023-2025)
Dr. Huanwen WU – PhD student (2021-2025)
Henry CHOI Chi Hin – BBMS FYP student (2025-2026)